[color=violet][h2]Mari & ???[/h2][/color]

Mari took a deep breath, though taking care not to breath in any of the dust that floated around her. With a little shining bubble bobbing beside her, she clambered through the new hole in the wall. It had fallen in yesterday, and today she wanted to explore.

It was a long time before she saw anything interesting. There was a gap in the roof, and it was letting in a beam of sunlight. Lying with its back turned to her, was a giant bird. Was it asleep?

Stepping closer, she gently brushed its wing... so soft. But she only took that in for a moment before the bird moved suddenly, spinning around and-

"You're not a bird!" Mari said.

The 'bird' threw its wings in front of itself protectively, staring. "Ah... mmm..."

"What are you?" the little girl asked, tilting her head. "Are you a bird-lady, or a lady-bird?"

The creature shook its head, lowering their wings a bit. Her eyes were filled with fear, the whites clearly visible around the azure iris. Mari could feel them watching her, closely.

"N-no... a harpy," it shyly replied.

"Oh." Mari said, shoulders drooping slightly. Then, looking back up at the har-pea, she told it "You're really pretty!"

The harpy's cheeks became a little red-tinted, her eyes shooting towards the wings covering her body. Their stiff lips softened a little, curving into a little smile.

"T-Thank you... uuuh..." it stammered back. The creature looked at Mari again, just as curious as she was.

"A-Are... D-Do... I-is this your house?"

"No." Mari said. "It's my uncle's. Then he had to go away, for a long time, so Endar looks after it."

"E-Endar..." the harpy repeated. Then, it meekly asked: "Is... does E-Endar know I'm here?"

Honestly, Mari didn't know. Endar knew a lot of things Mari didn't... but she knew some things he didn't, like how to get into the rafters. 

"No." she shrugged. "I don't think so, anyway. He's having this weird gathering out in the courtyard right now, and he's been teaching me how to pack my things, so he's been really busy recently."

The harpy's wings lowered a bit further, but so did their smile.

"A-Are... you lonely? I-If you want, we c-could play..." she offered meekly, speaking in a hushed tone.

Mari's eyes lit up. "Yeah!! I'd love to play! We'll have to be quiet, though... Endar can hear a lot. I've been pinching my ears to make them pointed like his, but it hurts a lot."

The harpy giggled. "L-Let's play h-hide and s-seek then... okay? I-I'll count first."

The harpy wrapped her wings around her face, and bouncing on her heels, Mari worked her way across the attic. She knew all the best places. There was no way Harpy could win!